Chest CT scan with contrast cost in Nashville, TN
In Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN, 4 hospitals list a cash price for diagnostic CT scan of the chest, with contrast dye: from $371.78 to $882.89, with a median of $787.55. The lowest listed price is at Vanderbilt Wilson County Hospital — $415.77 less than the median here. Across Tennessee, the median is $616.44 at 43 hospitals.
Cash prices at 4 facilities across 4 cities for code 71260, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Oct 1, 2025 and Oct 1, 2025.
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vanderbilt Wilson County Hospital lowest Lebanon, TN · (615) 444-2250 CAT SCAN OF CHEST CONTRAST | $371.78 | $1,282.00 | $115.37–$1,282.00 | 71% | Oct 1, 2025 source file |
| Vanderbilt University Medical Center Nashville, TN · (615) 322-3454 CAT SCAN OF CHEST CONTRAST | $692.28 | $1,282.00 | $115.37–$1,282.00 | 46% | Oct 1, 2025 source file |
| Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital Murfreesboro, TN · (615) 396-4100 CT CHEST W/CONTRAST | $882.81 | $2,942.70 | $188.88–$672.95 | 70% | — source file |
| Saint Thomas West Hospital Harding Pk Nashville, TN · (615) 222-2111 CT CHEST W/CONTRAST | $882.89 | $2,942.95 | $188.88–$562.76 | 70% | — source file |
| Vanderbilt Wilson County Hospital Lebanon, TN · (615) 444-2250 HC CT CHEST W/CONTRAST | $1,080.83 | $3,727.00 | $86.64–$2,981.60 | 71% | Oct 1, 2025 source file |
| Vanderbilt University Medical Center Nashville, TN · (615) 322-3454 HC CT CHEST W/CONTRAST | $2,012.58 | $3,727.00 | $85.98–$2,981.60 | 46% | Oct 1, 2025 source file |
Outpatient: lowest $371.78, median $787.55, highest $882.89 — a 2.4× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 2 facilities here, median $532.03. Inpatient and outpatient prices are not comparable and are kept on separate pages: the inpatient charge covers admission, not the same purchase.
Cash or insurance?
At 2 of 4 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at none is it below every plan's rate. If you have insurance but have not met your deductible, you usually pay your plan's negotiated rate, which falls somewhere in the "Insurers pay" column. Paying cash can cost less, but a cash payment usually does not count toward your deductible. Ask the hospital for both numbers before you book.
What it is
A chest CT with contrast uses X-rays and dye injected into a vein to make detailed pictures of the lungs, blood vessels, lymph nodes and other chest tissues. It is used to look at masses, enlarged lymph nodes, infections and for cancer staging.
What the price covers
The hospital price usually covers the scan; the contrast agent may appear as a separate line on some bills. The radiologist's reading is often billed separately.